Dragon Fire
by joshhutchersonissexy123
Summary: Protecting people precious to me. That is my nindo, my ninja way, and I will die if I have to. I will not face things as a coward like I did before. Yuki Ryuho's story of adventure, drama, and romance.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto sadly.**  
_

* * *

_Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump.  
_

My heart was racing. Pounding in my ears.

_Thump-thump, thump-thump.  
_

The flames were all around me, growing bigger and bigger, licking and nipping at my skin. I was sprinting as fast as I possibly could, running on pure adrenaline at this point.

_Thump-thump.  
_

_'Why is this happening to me?!'_

I ran into a clearing and dropped to my knees on the asphalt, scraping myself and yelping in the process. I was covered in soot which just enhanced the pain. The fact that I had a massive headache didn't help either. I started crying, letting out small whimpers. It was so hard to breathe.

_'Calm down Yuki, everything will be fine. Mommy and daddy are strong, they'll be okay!' _I told myself.

I took a deep breath, lifted my head up, and looked around. I spotted a tall man across the short clearing, his back facing me.

_'A man? Maybe he can tell me what's going on and help me find someone!' _This thought made me feel slightly better and the tears slowed down a bit.

I shakily got up, and stumbled over to him. When I reached about five feet behind him, I stopped.

"Mister?"

His head snapped around so quickly I worried he might have broken his neck. He had a mask covering the lower half of his face.

"What's this? Someone is left?" He said in a chilling voice

_'What does he mean by that?' _I wondered.

"What's going on?! Where is everyone and why... w-why..." the words died on my tongue as he stared at me, his eyes dark and menacing.

I suddenly felt fear fill me again.

I took a few steps back, and he took a few forward. I hurried back even further, but so did he. I turned to run, but found myself stuck, unable to move. I screamed.

_'What kind of jutsu is this?!'  
_

"Nobody will hear your pathetic screams baka." he barked at me. I whimpered and cried harder in response, to which he laughed at.

I then found my body being forced to turn back and face him. He shook his head at me.

I could have sworn he was smiling at me under his mask. "Fool. Everyone's probably dead by now. And look at you, too weak to do anything, to even _try _to protect anyone, or anything. Instead you just run away like the okubyomono you are."

My eyes widened.

_'D-dead? No...no... NO!'_

I shrieked and started to full out sob.

He chuckled and took out a kunai, twirling it around his finger. My breath started coming out raggedly.

"P-please! I don't want t-to die!" I told him.

He snorted. "Too bad."

_"Please!"_

His eyes softened. "Look, I'll put you out of your misery quickly and you can join the rest of your family, kid." he said.

"N-no! Please!" I begged. His eyes hardened again.

"Forget it. You've wasted enough of my time. It's over!" he snarled.

I choked up.

He raised the kunai, my eyes watching his arm shift. He threw it, heading straight towards my head, and I couldn't move.

My last thought was going to be, _'Sayonara.'_

* * *

**A/N: So you guys, first chapter of my first story! c: I know it's short, but this was important and the other chapters will be longer, promise!**

**Heh heh... Yeah it's a cliffie... -sweatdrops- Don't kill me! **

**You also might be wondering what the hell this has to do with Naruto, and well, they're all gonna be in the next chapter :D  
**

**Btw, ** _**okubyomono**_** means coward in Japanese.**

**So anyway, go on and click that little button that says ****_review. _****Comments, predictions, questions, anything. You know you want to c; **

**Flames suck but constructive criticism is totally appreciated!**

**Cookies for everyone! :D**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Naruto -_-**

* * *

Crying, waiting for the sharp pain of the kunai blade, when suddenly I was pushed to the side, getting knocked out of breath.

As I was trying to regain my breath and recover from the shock, I looked up to see that a man had pushed me out of the way.

* * *

My eyes shot open and I quickly sat up, gasping for air. I grabbed my head, just to find out I was covered in cold sweat. I slammed my fist into the mattress in anger.

I _hated _reliving that nightmare. It made feel so... alone.

_'Don't think like that, you're not alone and you know it. You're stronger now too.'_

I pushed the bangs that were matted to my forehead away and calmed down, letting out a deep sigh. I groggily got up and walked to the window, trying to rub the bleariness in my eyes away. I opened the shades and found out the sun was just rising on the streets of Konoha. The sun's first rays making the early, empty streets look beautifully serene. The thought of my home and all the people in it comforted me slightly.

I turned around and bit my lip, contemplating what to do now.

_'Well, I could go back to bed and sleep some more.' _I was worried to do that because I didn't want to have any more bad dreams. Plus, I was all sticky with the cold sweat, starting to make me feel gross. I decided I would just go take a shower and get ready for the academy. It was orientation day anyway.

A vein popped out on my forehead.

_'Baka dreams, I could have slept!' _I thought bitterly.

I ambled over to the bathroom and turned on the water. I fumbled around with the temperature until it was hot, and took a long, soothing shower.

-.-.-

After showering and eating breakfast, I stood in front of the mirror in my fluffy robe, brushing my short blonde hair that reached slightly past my shoulders. Not as bright as Naruto's, but not as pale as Ino's. It was dry, so I put it up in a ponytail, leaving my bangs though. I never left my hair down since it would just get in the way. I don't know how girls could have such long hair and keep it down as ninjas. It felt impractical to me... Maybe I was just jealous...

I stared at the mirror. Green and pupil-less eyes stared back at me, but not like Ino's pretty orbs, more like Hinata's strange ones. I tugged off the robe so I could get dressed.

I scrunched my nose. _'Are my boobs ever gonna grow?'_

I proceeded to do all my wrappings and pulled on my clothes, shoes, and weapon pouches. I then pulled a white ribbon around my ponytail and made a bow. It used to belong to my mother, and I wear it in her memory.

As the final touch, I took out my white hitai-ate. It was my first time wearing it. The light bounced off of the Konoha leaf symbol engraved into the metal, reminding me of the other day.

* * *

_I looked at the table filled with different hitai-ates. A white one stuck out at me. It would go nicely with my mother's ribbon. I picked it up, the soft material caressing my skin. I stared at the leaf symbol. I had just passed my Genin exam. After all my hard work, I was finally an official ninja. A shinobi of Konoha._

_I went outside. All the were kids with their families. Pride filled me, knowing all our blood, sweat, and tears paid off. I felt tears prick at the corners of my eyes as I thought about how proud my parents must be, looking down on me. I wiped my eyes and searched the area for Naruto. I saw him sitting all alone on the swing._

_'Oh no...' I thought as a sadness filled me._

_"Hey..." I whispered to him. He looked at me, his big, sapphire eyes sorrowful, and whispered a greeting back._

_I stared at him for a moment, before leaning over and hugging him, telling him he'd pass next time if he worked hard. I also told him I was here for him, knowing that seeing all the families must have just been making it worse for him. I rubbed small circles on his back, trying to comfort him._

_He grinned at me and said he'd get it next time for sure. My heart went out to him. I smiled._

_-.-.-_

_Later that night as I was making myself dinner, somebody knocked on my door. I opened it to find Naruto. He looked extremely excited... Wait, was that a hitai-ate on his head?_

_"Yuki! I passed, I passed the Genin exam!" he shouted, jumping eagerly._

_'What?! Yes! Now we can be ninjas together!' I thought._

_I was frozen in shock for a moment before squealing and throwing my arms around him, laughing. I pulled away and asked him how._

_He seemed hesitant before answering, "I learned the clone jutsu and Iruka-sensei passed me."_

_I could tell he wasn't mentioning something, but I didn't say anything. We celebrated with some ramen of course!_

* * *

I was so elated, I felt like I was soaring.

I tied it around my waist, feeling honored to be wearing it.

_'Just in time too,' _I noticed as I glanced at the clock, and left out the door of my tiny apartment.

I strolled through the now-busy marketplace, greeting familiar people every now and then. I paused for a moment and took it in. The sight of the lively villagers haggling, the sound of small children laughing, and the delicious smell of food. A small smile found it's way onto my face.

Soon I arrived at the academy, and entered through the doors of my classroom.

I cast my gaze around the room, searching for somewhere to sit and also save a seat for Naruto. My eyes landed on Sasuke, sitting there stoically.

* * *

_Flashback_

_My seven year old self walks into the classroom._

_I see Sasuke sitting there by himself. He was so sad and quiet lately after the death of his clan. My family had been very upset too, since our parents were close. __He had shocked me when he broke down and told me about Itachi doing it._ When I reached him, I heard whispering behind us.

_"Isn't that Sasuke Uchiha?" one boy said._

_"Yeah, and I heard his whole clan was murdered." the other replied._

_Their conversation was obviously making him uncomfortable. I turned around with my hands on my hips._

_"Aye, shuddup ya bakas!" I yelled at them. They seemed shocked and then quickly looked away._

_"Hey Sasuke, are you okay?" I asked, gently placing a hand on his shoulder. He didn't say anything. I started poking him._

_"C'mooon, talk to me!" I kept prodding at him, giving him a big grin while doing so._

_His head whipped up and he stared at me with angry eyes._

_"Just leave me alone!" he barked._

_"O-okay...sorry." I walked away sniffling and wiping at me eyes._

* * *

After that he just grew even more distant, not just from me, but everyone. He focused completely on revenge. I felt sorta bad for him. He must be lonely, but then again, it's his own choice.

I guess Sasuke and I were opposites in a way. After his family died, he didn't want friends, while I did. Scratch that, I _needed _them with my family gone. I met Naruto when I was at my lowest, and his bright attitude changed me, made me a happier and better person. I learned to look on the bright side of things. He's what keeps me going, and if something ever happened to him I would just die. I don't know what I would be like today if it wasn't for him. Who knows, I could have ended up detached, like Sasuke. Then again, the evils that haunted my dreams were taken care of. Just a bunch of stupid, cold hearted bastards that wanted to find out my clan's secrets, who were captured and deservedly killed. Meanwhile, Itachi is still out there. I understand why Sasuke does what he does.

"Hey Yuki, whatcha doing standing there?" It was Naruto.

The thought of Naruto made me blush. I had a small crush on him since we were younger, but it grew much stronger over the years.

_'Ugh Yuki, calm yourself!' _I put my hands against my flaming cheeks to cool them down. I took a deep breath, collected myself, and headed over to the empty seats next to Sasuke.

"Oh nothing, just thinking. Come on Naruto, there's some seats over here." I said to him.

He sat down while I leaned back against the desk, chatting with people, when Shikamaru walked by. Sure he was lazy, but also a genius and pretty chill.

"Hey Shika." I said, giving him a small wave and grinning at him, using the nickname I gave him when we were younger that he claims to hate, although I think deep down he finds it endearing. He looked over.

"Hey Yuki." He then looked next to me at Naruto, and raised an eyebrow.

"What are _you _doing here Naruto? This isn't for dropouts. You can't be here unless you graduated."

I was surprised, Shikamaru was usually so nice, even if he is pretty sarcastic.

"Shikamaru!" I gasped, giving him a small glare. Naruto defended himself though.

Abruptly, the doors burst open, revealing two panting kunoichis. Ah, the founders of Sasuke's fan-club.

"I'm first!" Sakura and Ino both screamed.

"I won again, Sakura." "Give it up, I had to look back to see you. My toe was at least a tenth of an inch ahead!" "Have you always been this delusional?" They bickered. I snorted. They were both so ridiculous. It made me crazy how they fawned over and claimed to 'love' Sasuke so much, someone they knew absolutely nothing about, and someone who obviously didn't return the favor. I had feelings for Naruto, but I knew him better then anyone, and didn't act like an idiot when I was around him. Well, at least I hope not.

I glanced at Naruto to see he was staring at Sakura, blushing. My spirits fell.

_'Oh yeah, he likes her. He told me about how he had a crush on her...'_ What did he see in her? She _is _really pretty...

I felt disheartened. There was a tightness in my chest. I looked away.

Suddenly, Sakura rushed over here. Naruto greeted her, but she pushed him to the ground. I gasped and crouched over to help him up.

"Uh, good morning Sasuke!" she said.

I clenched my fists, hard. Now I was mad. Are you kidding me? Naruto liked her and she pushed him away like he was _nothing, _just an object in the way, so she could tell Sasuke _good morning? _He just looked at her blankly.

"Mind if I sit next to you?" she asked.

"Back off forehead, I'm sitting next to Sasuke!" Ino said, grabbing her.

"I was here first!" "I walked into the classroom before you did. Everybody saw it!" They started arguing again, and soon almost all the girls in the classroom did too. If I clenched my fists any tighter they would bleed.

_'That's enough.'_

I got up and pushed them both roughly out of the way, and plopped down into the seat next Sasuke with my arms crossed, staring straight ahead. I was so fed up with all the girls' absurdness. I could feel the scowl on my face. They gasped.

"And what do _you _think you're doing?" Ino yelled.

"Yeah, I was going to sit there!" Sakura added. I tried to stay calm, but they kept nagging at me, louder and louder, the other girls joining in. I suddenly got up and slammed my hands on the table.

"I'm sitting here because obviously none of you _idiots _can handle it!" I screamed, staring icily at them. It got quiet.

_'Calm. Down.' _I told myself. _'They aren't worth your time.' _I slowly sat back down.

Naruto then leaped up onto the table, right in Sasuke's face. They got into a glaring match and I swear I could see electricity flying between them. The girls' attention switched to that as they told Naruto to leave him alone. The guy behind Naruto moved and accidentally elbowed him, causing Naruto to fall forward and... _kiss Sasuke?!_

My eyes went wide. They both jumped back and started to spit and gag.

All the girls shrieked and started to attack Naruto.

I sighed.

-.-.-

"As of today, you are all ninjas. To get here you faced difficult trials and hardships." A surge of pride went through me.

After I forced the girls to stop beating up Naruto, Iruka-sensei arrived and we all took our seats. It ended up first Naruto, Sakura, myself, then Sasuke. I wanted to sit next to Naruto, but I knew he would be happier next to Sakura, and she would be be mad if I sat next to Sasuke, so I did. I smirked.

"But that's nothing." Iruka-sensei continued. "What comes next will be far more difficult. Now you're only Genin. First level ninjas. All the Genin will be grouped into three-man squads, with the exception of one four-man squad, due to the uneven number of students. Each squad will be led by a Jounin, an elite ninja."

Sakura: _'Cha! I'm gonna be with Sasuke, so back off hags!'  
_Sasuke: _'Huh. Groups of three and four? That will only slow me down.'  
_Naruto: _'I wanna be with Yuki and Sakura. As long as it's not Sasuke then I don't care.'_

_'I really hope I'm with Naruto. I know a lot of the other kids don't like him. And_ _**please **__Kami, don't let me end up with one of those fan-girls.' _I tend to have bad luck though. I groaned.

"We want each squad to have a balance of strength and abilities, so that's how we set them up. I will now announce the squads." I held my breath as Iruka-sensei started listing off the teams.

He listed a couple and then finally, "Squad seven: Naruto Uzumaki," I perked up.

"Yuki Ryuho," I almost squealed, but contained it and let a big grin take over my face instead. I looked over at Naruto and we smiled at each other.

"Sakura Haruno," Naruto jumped up and screamed, "Yeeeeah!"

_'Oh...' _I thought, looking down. Sakura made a strange noise. I banged my head against the desk.

"and Sasuke Uchiha." Sakura freaked out.

_'Great. Well at least Sasuke's a really good ninja.'_

"Squad eight: Hinata Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka, and Shino Aburame." That will be a strong squad. I was friends with Hinata and Kiba. I didn't know Shino too well though. Most people thought he was weird because of his bugs, but he was powerful and I respected him.

Behind me I heard Shikamaru say to Ino, "I don't get it, what do you see in a guy like that? He's not so special."

_'You tell her Shika.' _I chuckled.

Ino said how she'd hate to be on Shikamaru's squad, and of course ended up with him and Choji. Oh, the irony.

"Those are all the squads." Iruka-sensei announced.

Naruto stood up. "Iruka-sensei, why does a great ninja like me, have to be in the same group with a slug like Sasuke?" I sweatdropped as Sakura growled.

"Sasuke had the highest scores out of the graduating class, while you had the worst. Sakura is very intelligent, and Yuki is one of our best kunoichi. Therefore, the team is balanced." Some people laughed as Naruto growled.

_'Heh heh, heck yeah, best kunoichi! Hard work paying off!' _I thought, doing a little peace sign in my mind.

"Just make sure you don't get in my way, dobe." I heard Sasuke smugly say from my left. Well, someone's arrogant.

"Hey, what did you just say?!" Naruto shouted

"Hard of hearing?" Sasuke replied.

"Knock it off Naruto! Sit down!" Sakura scolded him.

I turned to her. Perfect chance to annoy her. "Your precious _Sasuke _that you love so much started it, so why are you mad at Naruto? For what, _defending _himself? Cause _Sasuke _can do no wrong, right?"

"Cha! Did you just insult Sasuke?!" she screeched.

"So what if I did? What are you gonna do about it, _billboard brow?" _I said in a mocking tone, using a nickname for her that I picked up from Ino.

An angry look crossed over her face. I heard Kiba yell cat fight from somewhere in the room.

"Well at least _I'm_ not a _dumb blonde!" _I gasped.

_'Oh no she did __**not**__! I'm gonna bash her little, pink head in!'_

I snapped up. Her eyes widened when I pulled my fist back, ready to punch her in the mouth, when someone grabbed my wrist and roughly pulled me back down to my seat, as Iruka-sensei shouted, "_Enough!" _Groans of disappointment rang out around the room.

Sakura huffed and raised her nose at me, as she turned away and crossed her arms. I think Iruka-sensei mumbled something along the lines, "I don't get paid enough for this."

I growled as I shifted around to see the owner of the hand holding my wrist. It was Sasuke, who was glaring at me. I huffed and tugged my wrist away, rubbing it as I faced back up front.

Iruka-sensei cleared his throat and the class quieted down. "After lunch, you'll meet your new Jounin teachers. Until then, class dismissed."

As the room started to clear out, Naruto came up to me. He looked... sort of mad? I raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked.

"Yuki! How could you do that to Sakura?! You know I like her!" he whined with a blush covering his face.

_'What? But, I was defending him!'_

I averted my eyes. I really didn't want to get into a fight with him_. _"Sorry, Naruto. I'll try to be nicer to her from now on." I told him.

He grinned, flashing me his bright smile. "I'm sorry Yuki, it's just you know I really like her and-"

"Yeah, it's okay, I know." I cut him off, looking up and giving him a small smile.

"I'm going to go get some lunch." I waved at him, then quickly turned around and jumped off. I let out a breath. I needed some space to think.

* * *

I sat up high on tree, chewing on some onigiri. I leaned my head back on the tree and looked up at the clouds.

_'I really do need to keep my temper in check. I guess I really should try to get along with Sakura. I mean, we're on a squad together now, and maybe she's not so bad. I need to stop acting so childish... Plus it would make Naruto happy. He always tries to make me happy, so I should do the same for him.' _I exhaled, blowing some hair out of my face.

_'What a team. At least it'll be interesting.' _I threw the rest of my onigiri onto the forest floor so some animal could have it. I wasn't hungry anymore.

I heard some familiar voices. I looked through the foliage towards the source... My jaw almost hit the floor.

OH. MY. KAMI.

Sasuke and Sakura were about to kiss! About a million things ran through my mind.

_'WHAT?! Sasuke and Sakura?! He likes her?! What?! I thought he was an emotionless rock! Has the world gone mad?! What's going on?! What did she say to him?! What did he say to her?! Naruto's gonna be crushed! What if they keep it a secret? Gasp! Maybe they've already been together for who-knows-how-long and have kept it a secret! I'M SO CONFUSED! Are they actually gonna do it?! Kami!' _My eyes widened as they got closer.

A fierce blush heated up my face. I pulled my hood on. _'I really shouldn't be watching this... I'll just quietly leave and give them some privacy.' _As I was about to go, Sasuke grabbed his stomach and ran off, shouting, "I'll be right back!"

_'Huh?' _I sat there dumbfounded, trying to figure out what just happened.

I got up and skipped through some trees, then hopped down and started walking towards the academy. I didn't want Sakura to know I just saw all of that. As I got closer, she saw me and a smug look crossed her face. I raised an eyebrow at her. She opened her mouth to say something, but then her face lit up and she giggled when she looked past me. I looked over my shoulder and saw Sasuke. _'Uh-oh, this is going to be awkward for me.'_

"Sasuke! You're back! Don't be so shy, you bad boy!"

_'...Did she seriously just say that? Is she really going to continue in front of me?' _I sweatdropped. She rambled on.

"Are you ready now?! You know, mentally prepared? Because I am, I mean, I'm raring to go!" He kept walking.

_'Why isn't he stopping? Maybe I've gone insane, or maybe I'm dreaming.' _I pinched myself, hard. _'Okay, ow, maybe not.'_

"Hey, wait a minute!" Sakura yelled. He stopped next to me.

_'Maybe I should make a run for it. I mean, I don't want to see them make-out, bleh.' _I made a face. I'm glad my hood's up since my face is so red. _'But this is so dramatic... Hmm, if they start doing something, I'll leave.'_

"Where's Naruto?" Okay, out of all the things Sasuke could have said, I was not expecting that. That wasn't very romantic.

"Oh see, there you go changing the subject again. Anyway, Naruto just picks fights with you. You know why he's so annoying? Cause he wasn't raised right. He doesn't have a mother or father, no one to teach him from right to wrong." I gasped, and whipped around. I saw Sasuke shaking his head out of the corner of my eyes.

'_Did she really just say that? Does she know how insensitive that is?!'_

"Think about it, he just does whatever comes into his head. If I did things like Naruto, forget it! I mean, my parents would get mad and I'd get in trouble, so of course I don't do it. But if you don't have parents to tell you, how would you know?" she stated snottily.

Red was starting to cloud my eyes. I could feel fire coursing through me. My hands were starting to heat up. This wasn't childish like from our fight earlier, this was _real _anger. I stared at her.

_'Don't. Blow. Up.' _I could feel myself shaking. My teeth were clenched.

She has no clue. **_No clue._**

"He's selfish and bratty. He's all alone."

I couldn't take it. I could feel my body burning. She's the brat!

"Alone. Isolated. It's not about your parents scolding you. You have no idea what it means to be alone." Sasuke stated.

"W-why are you saying that? Sakura asked, sounding surprised.

_'That's right. Sasuke understands.' _I remembered, looking over at him.

I closed my eyes. _'And he always stays calm, of course. I have to, too. It's time for me to stop losing my temper and stop acting so immature.'_

I opened them and stared blankly at Sakura. "You have no clue Sakura. You don't know how lucky you have it." I simply turned and started to walk away.

"Because, you're annoying." Sasuke said in answer to her question, and also left. She gasped.

-.-.-

We silently walked side by side back to the academy. I pulled my hood down. This felt so familiar. It reminded me of when we were little. I put my hands up and behind my head, a habit I've picked up from Naruto. I glanced over at Sasuke, who had his hands in his pockets.

_'I wonder if we could ever be friends again.'_

We walked through the halls towards the classroom, when Naruto came running over. He stopped. "Hi Naruto!" I exclaimed, grinning.

"Sasuke, what are you doing here?!"

_'Why is he asking that? We're supposed to wait in the room for out new sensei after lunch...?'_

"How did you get loose?!"

_'Loose? What is he talking about?'_

"I used the escape jutsu. No sweat, it's a very basic technique." Sasuke replied. I was completely confused.

"Why'd you do that? Transform into me?" Sasuke asked him.

I froze. My heart dropped to my stomach. It all made sense now.

I pushed past Naruto and rushed away. I could hear them starting to fight behind me, but I didn't care.

I hurried towards the classroom, praying that nobody was there, so I could be alone for a bit before they started to arrive. I opened the door, and it was empty. Finally, some good luck. I sat down on top of a desk.

_'Naruto really likes Sakura.' _I had tried brushing it off before, but it was now obvious he had legitimate feelings for her. I didn't like her, but I had to admit, she was really smart and pretty. That didn't help my mood.

I felt dejected. The one person who's precious to me likes someone else. Even though she treats him terribly, he still likes her. He never gives up, that's just him. Maybe he can see something in her that I can't. I don't know.

_'Quit being such a drama queen Yuki.'_

I needed to push my upset feelings down and stop being such an emotional little girl. A shinobi isn't supposed to show emotion. Even though I feel hurt, it's not his fault, and Naruto is still my best friend and I have to be there for him, just like he'll be there for me, right? Right. I smiled. I'll just deal with it. Things are still normal, everything's fine.

_'Squish it down. Be a shinobi.'  
_  
The classroom started to fill with friendly faces and I cheered up a little bit.

* * *

**A/N: PLEASE READ THIS.**

**1. I AM NOT SAKURA BASHING. ****This is just how Sakura behaved at the beginning. Yuki is also being bitchy, but she's a soon-to-be teen, and that's how they really are lol. She'll grow over time of course, just like Sakura.**

**2. YUKI IS NOT A MARY SUE JUST BECAUSE SHE'S BLONDE. I actually modeled her after my friend Jenna, so this goes out to you Jen! xD Also, yes, she has emotions. I want her to be realistic, and at this time in her life, she is struggling with crushes, insecurities, friends, etc., which is completely normal for girls at that age. It would be strange if she was some un-emotional robot. I think I'm going to start toning it a bit down though, because I don't want her to be annoying. She's already grown some. When she was little she would easily cry, but know she's older and knows better.**

**3. So you guys could get a better image of her, I made some pics, so check em out. Go onto deviantART and search lillian-chan. (Make sure to put the dash!) You'll see two pictures of Yuki. The first is what I planned for her to wear originally, but I thought it was too plain, and since she's fun & young, I made a new pic. The picture with the blue background is the one of her that I'm using. **  
**I plan on making more pics of her & the rest of the gang during different scenes just for you guys xD**

**Okay, sorry, I had to get that off my chest lol. I bet you guys were not expecting this due to what the first chapter was like ;P**

**Anyway, leave a comment/question, rate. and review! Plushies & love for everyone! :D  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: WHY CAN'T I OWN NARUTO?!**

* * *

We were waiting for our new sensei to arrive. He was late. _Really _late. Naruto would complain and Sakura would nag him. This has gone on for a couple of hours now. I was trying extremely hard to refrain from knocking myself out.

I was sitting on top of a desk next to Sasuke, trying to block out Naruto and Sakura's bickering, when Sasuke asked me in a suspicious voice, "Why did you run away from Naruto and I earlier?" I glanced over at him.

_'Sharp. He really doesn't miss a thing.'_

"I didn't want to get into the middle of a stupid fight between you two."

"Hn." he grunted out, narrowing his obsidian eyes at me for a moment before turning away.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" I heard Sakura yell. I looked over to see Naruto standing on a stool, placing an eraser on top of the doorway.

"That's what he gets for coming late. Surprise!" Naruto stated as he jumped down, beaming. Sakura scolded him.

"Hn. Our teacher's a Jounin, an elite ninja. You think he'd fall for that?" Sasuke questioned.

"Yeah, Sasuke's right. You're so clueless Naruto."

I rolled my eyes. Of course Sakura would agree with him. I wanted to say something about it, but I know I shouldn't get into a fight with her, so I just said, "Hey, you never know," and smiled at Naruto, giving him a thumbs up. I kind of wanted it to work as payback for our sensei for being so late heh heh...

We saw a hand reaching for the door, and a head popped in, with the eraser hitting it straight on. It was quiet for a second, before Naruto burst out laughing. I laughed too, and tried to smother it with my hand over my mouth.

"I'm sorry Sensei! I told him not to do it, but he wouldn't listen. I'd _never _do something like that." Sakura declared. _'Psh. Kiss up.'_

I looked at our sensei for his reaction. Wait, silver hair?

_'Kakashi. This will be interesting.'_

"Hmm, how can I put this? My first impression of this group: You're a bunch of idiots."

I grinned at him.

* * *

We were now up on the roof, facing our sensei who was leaning against the railing. I sat on the bottom step Indian style in front of Sasuke, with Naruto to my left, and Sakura to my right.

"Alright, why don't you introduce yourselves, one at a time." Kakashi-sensei said.

"Introduce ourselves? Well, what are we supposed to say?" I had to agree with Sakura on that one, I had no clue what to say.

"Things you like, things you hate. Dreams for the future. Hobbies. Things like that." he replied.

"Why don't you tell us stuff? I mean, before we talk, tell us about you so we can see how it's supposed to work." Naruto told him. _'Oh, I wanna hear this.'_

"Me?" Sensei pointed to himself. "I'm Kakashi Hatake. Things I like and things I hate... I don't feel like telling you that. My dreams for the future, never really thought about it. As for my hobbies, I have lots of hobbies." Well, I kind of expected him to answer something like that.

"Okay, your turn. You on the right, you're first."

"Believe it, I'm Naruto Uzumaki." Naruto said, adjusting his headband. I almost giggled. He always used that catchphrase. He continued, "I like instant ramen in a cup, and I really like the ramen Iruka-sensei got me at the Ichiraku Noodle Shop. But I hate the three minutes you have to wait after you pour the water in the ramen cup. My hobby is eating different kinds of ramen and comparing them, and my future dream is to be the greatest Hokage! Then the whole village will stop disrespecting me and start treating me like I'm somebody, somebody important!"

_'Oh Naruto.' _I inwardly sighed. I hated how the other villagers treated him. I don't understand why they would do that to him...

Kakashi-sensei raised an eyebrow. "Alright, next."

"I'm Sakura Haruno. What I like, uh, I mean the person I like is," she blushed and glanced at Sasuke. "My hobby is, uh," she continued to stare and blush at him, and giggled. "My dream for the future is..." she flat out squealed.

_'Kami. Is that __**all **__she thinks about?' _I was disgusted by it. Even though I had a crush on Naruto, I still focused hard on my training, trying to improve constantly. I didn't obsess over him.

"And? What do you hate?" Sensei asked her.

"Naruto!" she screamed, and poor Naruto looked devastated. I sent a glare at her.

_'I'm still always here for you Naruto...'_

"Next."

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha." I turned around to watch him as he spoke. "I hate a lot of things, and I don't particularly like anything." Sakura whimpered. "What I have is not a dream, because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan," My heart pounded. I felt him. "and destroy a certain _someone_." He glimpsed at me. I turned back around. I felt chills go up my back. I pulled my knees to my body, hugging them with my arms. Silence.

"Okay, last one."

"...My name is Yuki Ryuho. I like to be with my friends. I hate... foolish people. A big hobby of mine is training. My dream is to become strong, to make my clan proud of me, and... to..." I paused. "to protect those who are precious to me." Kakashi-sensei intensely stared into my eyes, before nodding.

"Good. You're each unique and have your own ideas. We'll have our first mission tomorrow."

Kakashi-sensei then went on to explain that we are having a make-it-or-break-it test tomorrow, and there was a big chance we could fail.

"That's crazy! We worked hard to get here! Believe it! What was that graduation test for anyway!?" Naruto yelled.

"Oh that. That was just to select candidates who might become Genin. Or not." Kakashi said.

"Whaaat?!"

"That's how it is. I decide whether you pas or fail. Be at the designated training spot at 5 A.M. And bring your ninja gear."

_'Forget this, I'm going to pass! I've worked too hard and long not to! Kakashi knows it too! I will __**not **__lose.'_

"That's it, you're dismissed. Oh, and tomorrow you better skip breakfast, or else, you'll puke." Sensei added.

I narrowed my eyes. It was going to be tough.

* * *

It was 5 A.M. The sun hadn't even risen yet, and I was walking to where we were supposed to meet. I felt like I was going to fall over of tiredness any second. As I arrived, so did everyone else. Everyone looked exhausted except for Sasuke.

I furrowed my eyebrows. _'Wow. I really should wake up and be more alert like him.'_

I stood up straighter and rubbed my eyes as we met in the middle. "Good morning." I greeted them. Naruto let out an indecipherable noise, Sakura gave me a half evil, half sleepy look, which I ignored, and Sasuke just crossed his arms and grunted. After we stood around for about ten minutes, I figured Sensei would be late again, and suggested we sit down, so we did.

Naruto was pretty much sitting up asleep, and started to lean towards Sakura. She shrieked and pushed him away.

I sighed. I then tapped his shoulder and patted my lap. He smiled gratefully at me, before basically falling over onto it. I bit my lip. _'Am I his second choice?'_

Sakura tried to do the same thing multiple times with Sasuke, failing every time, before finally just deciding to rest using her bag as a pillow.

After a while, I looked over to find Sasuke glaring at me. I raised an eyebrow at him. "What?"

"What's with you and the dobe?" he pointed at Naruto, looking repulsed.

I looked down and noticed I had been absent-mindedly stroking his soft hair, and stopped. I shrugged, "He was tired."

Sasuke snorted. I narrowed my eyes at him. "Don't act like you're better then me Uchiha." What was his problem?

He looked almost... apologetic? Sad? Before he looked away and shifted back to emotionless.

_'You know, you're not alone Sasuke...'_

I sighed. "It's okay Sasuke." I whispered almost inaudibly.

-.-.-

It was hours later, and we were all awake in the bright sun.

"Morning everyone. Ready for your first day?"

Naruto and Sakura snapped up, screaming, "Hey, you're late!" at Kakashi-sensei.

"A black cat crossed my path so I had to take the long way." he replied. I smirked.

"Well," he cleared his throat, "let's get started."

He walked over to a tree stump and placed an alarm clock on top of it. "Here we go. It's set for noon."

He pulled three bells out of his pocket. "Your assignment is very simple. You just have to take these bells from me. That's all there is to it." he said as he jingled the bells. I knew not to underestimate him.

"If you can't get them by noon, you go without lunch. You'll be tied to those posts and watch as I eat my lunch in front of you."

_'That's why he told us to skip breakfast! To make it harder. Ugh.'_

"Wait a minute, there's four of us. How come there's only three bells?" I asked him.

Kakashi-sensei smiled. "Well that way, at least one of you will end up tied to a post and ultimately disqualified for failing to complete the mission. That one goes back to the academy."

I growled. Not me.

"Then again, all four of you could flunk out too. You can use any weapons including shuriken. If you're not prepared to kill me, you won't be able to take the bells."

"Those weapons are too dangerous sensei!" Sakura exclaimed.

Naruto laughed. "Especially since you couldn't even dodge that eraser."

I shook my head. _'Silly Naruto and Sakura.'_

"Class clowns are usually the weakest links. You can safely ignore them. Lowest scores, _losers._" Kakashi-sensei said. I could tell Naruto was getting angry.

"When I say start, you can begin."

Suddenly, Naruto was running at him with a kunai, but Sensei stopped him with one hand, and pulled Naruto's arm back, making the kunai point at the back of his head.

"Don't be in such a hurry, I didn't say start yet." I backed up a little. I needed to be prepared for anything to happen at any minute.

"But, you came at me with the full intention of destroying me, so, how can I say this? I'm actually starting to like you guys." I smiled a little bit.

"Get ready, aaaaand," I crouched down, "start!" I quickly jumped away. I went into a tree where I could hide and watch Kakashi-sensei.

"Ninja must know how to conceal their movements, and hide effectively." Sensei stated out loud. I carefully peeked around. Everyone was hidden well.

"You and me right now! Fair and square! Let's go!" I face-palmed. _'Dammit Naruto!'_

Kakashi-sensei looked at him. "You know, compared to the others, you're a little bit weird."

"Oh yeah? The only thing weird here is your haircut!" Naruto shot back. I had to choke back a snicker.

Naruto started sprinting towards Sensei, but stopped dead in his tracks as Kakashi started to pull something out of his pocket. "Shinobi Battle Techniques; Part One: Taijutsu. The physical part."

_'Wait, taijutsu is had-to-hand combat, so why is he pulling something out of his pocket?' _I wondered.

He slowly pulled out... _a book? Icha Icha Paradise? _I sweatdropped.

Sensei told Naruto to go ahead and attack, that his weak moves wouldn't effect him. Naruto dashed towards him, trying to land kicks and punches, but to no avail. Sensei blocked every one without even taking his eyes off the book.

Out of nowhere, Kakashi-sensei disappeared and ended up behind Naruto! _'Be careful Naruto!'_

"Don't let your enemy get behind you."

_'Is that... a tiger hand seal?! That's completely dangerous!'_

"Naruto! Get out of there!" I screamed out at him. He looked confusedly in my direction.

"Too late. Leaf Village Secret Finger Jutsu:" Kakashi-sensei said. I held my breath as his hands headed for Naruto. He... poked him in the butt. "A Thousand Years of Death!" Naruto went flying into the river.

Of course. _Of course. _He would do something like that.

As Sensei pulled his book back out, two shuriken came soaring at him from out of the water. He caught them easily with his fingers. Naruto crawled out, soaking wet. I couldn't hear what Sensei and him were saying, they were too far away at this point. Abruptly, a group of Narutos burst out of the water.

"Ha ha! You're over-confident Sensei! That's why you weren't ready for my best attack, my Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

My eyes widened. _'What?! Shadow clones?! That must have been what he wasn't telling me that night! That's such a powerful jutsu, how did he learn that?!' _I was shocked.

"Great technique, but I don't think you can maintain it for very long." Sensei said as the clones charged at him. "You talk like you're the best Naruto, but you're still the worst student. You can't beat me with this jutsu." A clone then jumped on Sensei's back from behind.

I blushed, grinning. _'Yeah Naruto! Go get him!'_

They all piled on top of him, holding him down, as one jumped up and threw a punch heading straight for Kakashi-sensei's face. Wait... Sensei was gone! Naruto ended up punching himself in the face?! After fighting with all of his clones, he finally dispelled the jutsu, revealing no Sensei and a bruised Naruto. Kakashi had used a simple replacement jutsu. Naruto just made himself look pretty lame.

I squinted my eyes. There was something shiny by the tree. A bell! It was obviously a trap though... Naruto wouldn't fall for it... Would he?

I sweatdropped. The answer was yes, as I watched him get yanked up into the tree, hanging there with his feet tied by a rope.

Kakashi-sensei hopped out, and walked over. He started to lecture Naruto about not taking obvious bait. _'This is my chance! His guard is down! I __**can't **__fail!' _

I threw a kunai at him, aiming straight for his head, but he dodged. I leaped out of the tree, sending more kunais and shuriken at him. He continued to avoid them. I got closer and started throwing faster. He kept dodging! I growled.

I was right in front of him now, fighting him hand-to-hand. I aimed a dropkick for him, but he moved out of the way. I landed in a squatting position, and whipped my head around to see a foot flying at me. I quickly flung myself on the ground and rolled away as he tried to punch me in the gut. I jumped back up and continued to attack him. I pulled my arm back, and sent my fist flying towards his face. He grabbed my wrist inches away and held it there. I threw my other arm towards the bells, but he stopped that one also. I was about to lift my foot and knee him where it would hurt, but he stepped on it.

He looked me straight in the eyes. "Why aren't you using your technique?" he asked me.

I smirked at him. "Because I'm taking it easy on you Sensei."

In a flash, he let go of my arm and his fist connected with my cheek, sending me flying backwards. I landed roughly on my back, my skull bouncing on the ground. I heard some gasps.

I slowly got up onto my knees, tenderly rubbing my jaw. _'Uuuugh...' _My head was throbbing.

"Don't get too confident Yuki." I heard him say. "Go ahead and try to use your kekkei genkai. It won't even help you."

I looked up at him and narrowed my eyes. I could feel my chakra burning inside of me. My hands heated up. "Fine, but you asked for it."

I sprang up, and flung myself at him. When my fist was near his face, it burst into flames. He narrowly dodged. I swiftly aimed a kick at him, my foot also in flames. He jumped back. I continued throwing my self at him, my hands and feet covered in fire. It was happening so fast, I felt like everything was a blur. He then leaped back, landing about 20 feet away from me.

"Is that all you got?" he asked in a mocking tone.

I wiped a tiny bit of blood dribbling from the corner of my mouth away. "Puh-lease." I responded.

_'Concentrate. He's trying to make you mad.' _I focused my chakra to my hands. I made a couple of hand seals. "Hinotama no Jutsu!" A small ball of fire appeared in one. I threw it at him. He skidded away.

_'How does he keep avoiding everything?!' _I kept throwing small balls of fire at him with my hands. He would jump and each one would miss.

_'Wait, that's it!' _I sent a ball of fire at him, and he hopped up into the air to dodge it. I made a larger ball of fire and threw it at the ground where he would land. It exploded, and created a large cloud of smoke.

I fell onto my knees, panting hard. I had used up a lot of my energy. _'Yes! Now I can go get a bell!' _The smoke started to clear slightly. _'I knew I could do it.' _I thought proudly as I smiled. I looked down at my hitai-ate. _'I've definitely earned this.'_

"Not so faaast." I heard someone say in a sing song voice.

My head snapped up. _'What? No!'_

I had used up a lot of energy, and my body felt exhausted. _'I can't give up though.' _I shakily got up, resting my hands on my knees as support, I was still breathing hard.

"That's it? I expected more from a member of the Ryuho Clan. I'm pretty disappointed." he said as he crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. He jingled the bells.

_'He's just trying to get you riled up.'_

"You're family must be disappointed as well. Oh wait, they're not here anymore, are they?" My jaw dropped.

"Because you're too weak." My body started shaking. My eyes glazed over. I could feel the anger seeping through. _'How dare he?!'_

"You were too weak to protect them." A rage filled me. I think someone screamed. It was a blur after that.

* * *

_Sasuke's POV_

I observed silently from my hiding spot, watching Yuki and Kakashi battle. They were gaining speed every second, and Yuki finally started to use her kekkei genkai. They were moving so fast, it was hard to keep up.

_'Hn. She has improved a lot since we were younger. I'm still faster of course, but she's definitely no weakling. I wonder why she hangs out with that baka Naruto...'_

I looked on, as Kakashi jumped farther away. Yuki did a couple of hand seals, and started to sling balls of fire at him. It reminded me of something.

* * *

_Flashback_

_Why couldn't I just get this jutsu right? I was trying so hard. I'll never be like Itachi, and my father will just hate me. I tried again, and only a small burst of fire came out of my mouth._

_"Hey Sasuke!" I looked over to see Yuki standing there grinning and waving at me, her other small hand clasped in her father's. She said something to him, and he nodded. She smiled, then started running towards me. "Bye Otou-san!" she yelled out. He chuckled, shaking his head and walking away._

_She came up next to me on the dock. "Konichiwa Sasuke." she said._

_I nodded my head towards her. "Hi Yuki. What are you doing here?"_

_She shrugged. "My dad came to see yours. I didn't want to be stuck with them so I decided to come stay with you instead."_

_She then squinted her eyes and leaned towards me. "What's that?" she asked, as she pointed at my face and then poked it. I winced and jerked back. "Ow!" I narrowed my eyes at her, gently touching the wounds. "They're burns."_

_Her eyes widened. "Oh, I'm sorry!" When I didn't respond, she pouted and gave me puppy dog eyes._

_I rolled my eyes at her. "It's fine."_

_She beamed, and reached into one of her pockets to pull something out. "Here." she said, taking out a small container._

_"What is it?" I asked her as she started to open it._

_She held it out to me. "It's a burn cream. I don't really use it much anymore, my skin's almost completely immune by now."_

_I crossed my arms and turned my head away. "Psh, I don't need that." I heard her sigh. I then felt something cold on my face, and yelped._

_"Quit being such a big baby!" I opened my eyes and saw her hand rubbing the cream on around my mouth. I gave in._

_"I'm not a big baby." I mumbled._

_She giggled. "Of course not Sasuke." I could feel my face heat up slightly from embarrassment._

_She retracted her hand and closed the container, putting it back into her pocket. I did feel a lot better now. "Arigato." I said._

_"No problem. So whatcha doing?" she asked me._

_"I'm trying to master the Gokakyu no Jutsu." I told her._

_She furrowed her eyebrows. "Isn't it too early for that?"_

_I clenched my fists. "Itachi learned it at an even earlier age."_

_"You're not Itachi though Sasuke, you're you. You should just take things at your own pace."_

_I snapped. "But you don't understand! It's all about Itachi! I want to make my father proud of me, like he is of him!" She backed up a little, her eyes wide and wet. Oh no, I didn't mean to make her cry! I hated it when girls cried. She was just trying to be nice._

_"I'm sorry Yuki." I said softly._

_She sniffled and wiped at her eyes. "It's okay."_

_She then smiled. "I'm too sensitive sometimes. So, want me to help you out with it?"_

_"Really?!" I asked eagerly._

_"Sure! Show me what you've got so far." she instructed._

_"Okay." I took a deep breath and prepared myself. I didn't want her to think I was weak or lame._

_I made the hand seals. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!"_

_Once again, a small flare of fire came out of my mouth. She would probably laugh at me now. I turned to see her reaction._

_"Good." she said. Wait, what? "Okay, now let me give you some tips."_

_She closed her eyes, and held out a hand. "For fire techniques, they come naturally to me, but you need to really concentrate. Focus on your flowing chakra. Make it feel like it's burning. This will probably hurt the first couple of times, but you'll get used to it." I watched as a small fire ignited on her palm._

_"Then focus that burning chakra to certain spot of the body. In your case, your mouth." The fire turned into a ball._

_"Then, when you really improve, you can do things like this." The fire started swirling around in a pretty pattern, before she shut her palm and it vanished. "I can't hold it for very long right now, but I'll work on it. Now you try."_

_I exhaled. Okay, I can do this. Concentrate. I did what she told me. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu!"_

_The fire was a lot bigger this time! It wasn't full yet, but much better! Otou-san will like this._

_"Yuki! Come, we're leaving!" a deep voice said from the distance._

_"Coming Otou-san!" she yelled back._

_She turned and grinned at me, giving me a small hug."See, I knew you could do it!"_

_I smiled. "Arigato again."_

_She laughed and ran off, waving at me. I waved back. "Bye Yuki!" I called after her. I heard a faint "Sayonara!"_

_I tuned back to the lake. Time for more practice._

* * *

I growled, shaking my head. I was such a naïve fool back then.

As Kakashi was in the air, Yuki's face lit up. She threw another fireball at him, and them a bigger one at the ground where he would land. It exploded in a cloud of smoke. _'Hn. Smart move.'_

She fell to the ground, panting. She must be tired from using so much chakra.

"Not so faaast." It was Kakashi, I could see him as the smoke began to clear.

"That's it? I expected more from a member of the Ryuho Clan. I'm pretty disappointed." he said as he crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. He jingled the bells. She slowly got up.

"Your family must be disappointed as well. Oh wait, they're not here anymore, are they? Because you're too weak." I could see the shock on Yuki's face. It was a completely low blow, but he was obviously trying to make her mad. Could she stay calm...?

"You were too weak to protect them."

I heard Naruto and Sakura gasp, then scream "Kakashi-sensei!"

Yuki's eyes glazed over, but that quickly changed. She became angry, a burning aura seeping off of her. She made some hand seals, ending with the tiger one. "Katon: Moeru Senpu!"

She screamed and raised her fist over her head, and slammed it into the ground. Suddenly, a ring up fire sprang up around her and Kakashi. My eyes widened. As she was running towards him, the ring of fire grew bigger, and turned into half of a sphere. They were completely surrounded by flames. It was deadly quiet. None of us knew what was going to happen. After a few suspenseful moments, a body came soaring high and fast out of the flames. The body flew into the river, and the flames died down into nothing.

Kakashi was standing there. He took out his little book and began reading.

I looked over to the river. Nothing. _'Did he kill her?!'_ A hand shot out. _'No.' _I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding.

She climbed out onto her hands and knees, soaking wet and shivering. _'How can she still be up?' _She tried to move, but stopped.

"I'm sorry Yuki. You know I didn't mean it, I was just aiming to make you mad. It worked too. Good try though. Another lesson: Shinobi are not supposed to show emotion."

She looked dazed, and then promptly passed out.

I stood there frozen, startled by everything that had just happened. _'Forget about it.' _It was my chance now, and I **was **going to get a bell.

I flung some shuriken at him, and they hit. I heard Naruto shriek that I'd taken it too far. I smirked. I was about to hop out, when Kakashi poofed into a log.

_'Another substitution jutsu!' _I began to jump from branch to branch to get away. _'Now he knows where I'm hiding. I've got to move fast. I thought he lowered his guard, but he did it on purpose, and I fell for it.'_

* * *

_Yuki's POV (FanFiction isn't allowing me to underline that -_- So let's just pretend it is c;)_

It was dark and cold. I cracked open my eyes. I saw a bright blue sky. My whole body hurt.

_'What happened?' _I thought as I dragged myself up. I then remembered my fight with Kakashi-sensei. He had kicked me out into the river. I had gotten drenched to the bone.

My chakra was intertwined with fire element, my kekkei genkai, so I could easily use fire jutsus, although I preferred to only use taijutsu when I could as to not waste my energy. It was one of the secrets of my clan. Getting sent into the water basically shut my chakra system down. I had mostly dried off by now though, since I had been laying passed out in the sun for who knows how long.

I also then remembered how Sensei had said he was just playing with me, and that a shinobi should not show emotion. A vein popped out on my head. _'I'm gonna get that baka! I let my emotions take control and totally embarrassed myself!'_

I knew there probably wasn't much time left, and I still needed to get a bell. I painfully got up to my feet. I felt like I might pass out again. I think I was suffering from minor chakra exhaustion, considering I had freaked out and used _Moeru Senpu, _which consumes a huge amount of chakra_. _I just couldn't give up though. I didn't waste years at the academy for nothing! I started walking towards the forest. I couldn't move very fast, and held a kunai alertly in my hand in case Kakashi-sensei ambushed me. My muscles were aching and I was covered in small scratches here and there. I was a ninja and I could take it though, I've been through worse. As I began to walk through a tiny clearing, something pink caught my eye.

_'Is that Sakura? Why is she laying there? Did she faint?'_

I came closer to get a better look and was surprised by what I found. I couldn't help but laugh. He narrowed his eyes at me. I only laughed harder. After finally calming down, I leaned over.

"Whatcha doin Sasuke?" I asked, grinning. He glared at me.

I snickered and began to dig around his head. "Don't worry, I'll get you out of there."

As I was working on getting him out, I nudged my head towards Sakura and asked, "What happened to her?" I paused for a moment, then reached over and closed her legs. She better appreciate that.

"I don't know. She came out of nowhere and then fainted."

"Ah, what a wonderful teammate." I said, letting out a chuckle.

After I finished digging him out, we stood over Sakura, waiting for her to wake up. Even if I didn't like her, I wanted to at least make sure she was okay.

She was finally awakening. She jumped up and grabbed onto Sasuke, shrieking that he was alright. He tried pushing her away off, shouting at her to let go. I grabbed my ears, my headache intensifying.

I shakily got up to my feet, Sasuke following my lead as he got rid of Sakura and also stood up. My vision was a little funny, but I ignored it.

"I've got to get a bell before lunch. That doesn't leave much time." I nodded in agreement with his statement. Sakura shot me a nasty glare.

"Sasuke, you're still trying to get one of those bells?" _'Duh, that's what we're supposed to do baka.'_

"A while ago, I touched one. Next time, I'll get one." Sasuke said. I liked his determination, I felt the same way. I smiled.

"That is really great. I can't believe you did that. You're amazing." she babbled. I rolled my eyes.

She continued, "Uh, it's almost lunch. There's not really enough time left, so maybe we should just give up and try again next year." I glared at her. I could not believe it. A whole _year?!_ Holy Kami, she really was an idiot. She didn't care about being a ninja at all. She didn't _deserve _that hitai-ate she was wearing. I would've reached over and snatched it off her head if I hadn't felt so ill.

"You sicken me Sakura." I spat out at her, before turning to walk away. I stopped when I heard a deep voice though.

"I'm the only one, who can destroy that person. I'm an avenger. I need this training and there's no time for setbacks." I looked over my shoulder, and saw Sasuke standing there, staring at the ground.

_'Is he... talking about Itachi?'_

"That day... I was crying..."

"W-when were you crying?" Sakura asked.

"It was my..."

"Sasuke..." I whispered. I knew how hard this was for him. I just wanted to go over and hug him, like I would when we were little. I just wanted to him to be like the old Sasuke I knew, but... that Sasuke was gone. That happy little boy had been crushed. His innocence was stolen. I felt like I could literally feel his pain.

He looked up and our eyes met for a moment. Then a bell rang.

I whipped back around, my mouth wide open. _'No!'_

"Dammit!" I screamed, throwing my kunai into the ground. I put my face in my hands, it was burning. _'Was that really it? All my years of trying __**so hard, **__for __**nothing**__? Am I really that __**weak**__? It can't be over yet... He'll have to give us more time or something, __**anything**__...' _I felt like my head was going to explode.

"Uh, I wasted too much time!" I heard Sasuke say.

I started to walk back towards the posts, but halted, swaying back and forth. There was black splotches in my vision. I could barely hear, but I think Sakura said my name. I grabbed my head. I started to fall over, but someone caught me. Sasuke. I grabbed his arm for support and straightened myself up, taking deep breaths.

"What's wrong with you?" he questioned.

"Chakra exhaustion." I manged to get out. He grabbed my other arm to help steady me.

"It's okay." I told him. "It was just a short dizzy spell."

Sakura was staring at me, and said a little too sweetly for my liking, "Chakra exhaustion is _very_ dangerous." Was she smiling? I glared at her.

I pushed away from Sasuke. "Just need to get some food in me. I'm fine. I'm not a _weakling _like some people_._" I said, looking pointedly at Sakura. She just lifted her nose up at me. We began to walk back, Sakura latching onto Sasuke's arm, him pushing her off, and me trying not to keel over.

-.-.-

Naruto ended up tied to the post. I sat in front of him while Sasuke and Sakura were on either side on of him. I pulled my hood up to try to block some of the blinding sun from my eyes. It wasn't helping my headache very much.

"Yuki, you okay?" Sensei asked with a raised eyebrow.

I crossed my arms and stared hard at him. "Perfectly peachy." All of our stomachs then rumbled in perfect harmony. I sweatdropped.

"Uh oh, stomachs growling, huh? That's too bad." He raised a finger, "Oh, by the way, about this exercise, well, I've decided I won't send any of you back to the academy." Naruto and Sakura started cheering.

_'What the... Something's not right here... Naruto fell into an obvious trap, Sakura just fainted, not sure what happened with Sasuke, and I fought Sensei, but failed to retrieve a bell...' _

"Then, then, that means all four of us, I mean all four of us-"

Kakashi-sensei cut Naruto off, "Yes, all four of you are being dropped from the program, _**permanently.**_" I stopped breathing.

"Drop us from the program?! That means we can never become ninja! You said if we couldn't take the bells we'd be sent back to the academy! You can't just change your mind and kick us out! Why would you do that?!" Naruto shouted as he fidgeted like crazy under the ropes.

"Cause you don't think like ninja. You think like little kids, like brats." he replied. I felt a flare of anger inside me, but still felt too weak to do anything about it. He _knew _how hard I worked!

Sasuke on the other hand ran at Kakashi-sensei to attack him, but Sensei caught him and pinned him down, twisting Sasuke's arm behind his back and placing his foot on top of Sasuke's head. "You think it's all about you." he said to him.

"Hey!" I yelled out at Sensei.

"LET GO OF SASUKE! HE'S NOT JUST SOME BUG YOU CAN STEP ON!" Sakura screeched.

"Dammit Sakura, stop screaming!" I yelled at her, covering my ears again. I felt like blood was rushing around in my head at 100 miles per hour.

"You don't know what it means to be a ninja, you think it's a game, huh?" Sensei asked Sakura. "Why do you think we put you on squads? Did you consider that question for one moment?"

"I don't know what you mean!" she replied.

"I mean, you never realized what this exercise is all about, not even close." he said.

"What it's about?" Naruto asked, confused.

"Yes, that's what determines whether you pass, or fail."

"But that's, I mean, I wanted to ask you about that from the beginning..." Sakura trailed off.

"Tch, use your head. Four people on a squad, why do you think we would do that?" It hit me then.

"Aaah! How are we supposed to know why you picked four people?! We didn't make the rules!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Teamwork." I whispered.

"Yes Yuki, teamwork. It's so basic." Sensei said. "If all four of you had come at me together, you might have been able to get the bells. Too late now though." I felt stupid. It was so simple.

Sakura questioned the bells and Kakashi-sensei explained how we were supposed to be a team and overcome that.

"Sakura! You obsessed over Sasuke who was gone, while Naruto and Yuki were right in front of you, and you wouldn't lift a finger to help them!" Sensei hollered. "Naruto! You do everything on your own, _everything_. Sasuke! You thought the others were far beneath you and worthless. Arrogance. Yuki! You actually helped out the others, getting closest to the meaning of the test, but not fully. You also let your emotions take control during our battle, even when you knew I was purposely trying to upset you, and exhausted yourself sick! I bet you're suffering from chakra exhaustion now." I averted my eyes.

"Ninja missions are carried out in squads. Of course you need individual skills, but teamwork is the most essential element. Every shinobi understands this. When individuals put themselves above the squad, this can lead to failure, and even death."

He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a kunai. "For example, Sakura," he placed the kunai against Sasuke's neck, "kill Naruto and Yuki now, or Sasuke dies!"

My instincts kicked in, and I grabbed a skuriken out of my pouch and threw it at him. He easily deflected it.

He nodded at me. "That's what happens on a mission."

I heard Sakura and Naruto sigh in relief. "Oh boy, that was scary." she said.

"Yeah, and good job at doing nothing!" I said to her. She just scrunched her face up at me.

Kakashi-sensei continued, "The enemy takes a hostage, and you've got an impossible choice, and someone ends up dead."

He put the kunai away and got up. "On every mission, your life is on the line."

He walked over to a big rock. "Did you look at this stone? The names engraved on it? They are all ninja, who are honored as heroes in our village."

"That's it, that's it that's it! I've decided I want my name to be engraved on that stone! I'm not gonna live and die for nothing like a dog! I'm gonna be a hero, a hero!" Naruto blurted out. I shivered. _'I hope that will never happen. He doesn't know what that stone is for...'_

"They are... a special kind of hero." Kakashi-sensei stated.

"Huh? What kind of heroes are they? C'mon, tell us!"

"K.I.A. heroes, Naruto. Killed in action." I said softly. It became quiet.

"This is a memorial stone. The names of some of my closest friends are engraved here." I turned away, my heart twisting. His name wasn't engraved there, but I knew my father was one of the people Kakashi-sensei was talking about.

He continued, "Alright, I'm going to give you one more chance, but I'm making it much harder on you. You'll have three hours to get a bell. Eat lunch to build up strength, but, Naruto doesn't get any." He walked towards Naruto. "It's your punishment for trying to break the rules and eat lunch by yourself. And, if anyone tries to feed him, that person will immediately fail. I make the rules, you follow them, got it?"

-.-.-

We were sitting there eating lunch. I felt slightly better now, after resting and eating. I had some chakra left in me. If I had used it all, it could have been much worse.

Naruto was tied to the post watching us. "I'm fine! I can go without eating lunch for weeks, believe it!" he said, but his stomach rumbled, disproving that.

I felt horrible. He looked so sad. I couldn't take it anymore. I held out my tray towards him. "Here Naruto, take mine." Everyone stopped moving.

"B-but, Yuki, you'll fail!" he exclaimed.

"Hey, this is about teamwork, right?" I told him, grinning. I noticed Sasuke hold his tray out too.

"What?! No Sasuke! You heard what the sensei said, you'll fail!" Sakura said, ignoring me.

"Kakashi's gone. We need to get those bells as a team, and if Naruto's hungry, he'll be weak and ineffective."

He looked up at me. "You eat yours Yuki, you're still exhausted. This could hurt the team, and jeopardize the mission." I smiled at him. _'Aw, he totally so does care even if he won't admit it!'_

Then something that completely surprised me happened. Sakura offered her lunch to Naruto. _'Is she doing it sincerely or because of Sasuke?' _She even fed him, although she didn't seem too happy about it.

_'Of course he accepts hers and wants her to feed him...' _I felt rejected. I had to learn how to deal with it though, and not let it effect me. I slowly took some more bites of my own lunch, since I felt Sasuke's eyes staring at me, and he had told me I should eat it earlier. He then looked away, as if he approved. I rolled my eyes.

Suddenly, there was some dark clouds and a powerful gust of wind, knocking my hood off. I stood up in front Naruto and raised my arms to shield us. Kakashi's head popped out of the clouds. "You! You broke the rules. I hope you're ready for the punishment." he said menacingly.

He began to make some hand seals, and the sky darkened, lightning crackling throughout it. "Any last words?"

"But, but you..." I began.

"Yes?" he asked.

"You... you told us we're a team! We're a squad now, and we're supposed to be here for each other!" I shouted at him.

"Y-eah! That's why they offered me food!" Naruto agreed.

"We're all on this squad, and we're all in it together." I heard Sasuke say.

"Exactly!" I said.

"Yeah! We gave our lunch to him because the four of us are one!" _'A little cheesy, but that works too. Nice Sakura.' _We may not like each other, but we are a team now, and we'll have to set aside our differences.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah! Believe it! That's right!"

"The four of you are one? That's your excuse?" Kakashi-sensei said, getting closer to us.

"It's not an excuse! It's the truth!" I replied.

He smiled. "Hmph. You pass." Nobody said anything. I wasn't sure if I heard him right. He repeated himself.

"What do you mean? How did we pass?" Sakura asked.

"You're the first squad that's ever succeeded. The others squads did exactly what I said, and fell into every trap, couldn't think for themselves." The skies cleared. "A ninja must see through deception. In the ninja world, those who breaks the rules are scum, that's true, but, those who abandon their friends, are worse than scum."

I couldn't believe it, we did it! I started to laugh.

"The exercise is over. Everyone passes. Squad 7 starts its first mission tomorrow!" Kakashi-sensei said, giving us a thumbs up. Sakura and Naruto let whoops of joy out, while Sasuke just closed his eyes and smirked. I knew I had a giant grin on my face. We got up. I would be a little sore, but fine by tomorrow after some meditation and a good sleep. Everyone started to walk home. I heard Naruto screaming at us and I jogged back, laughing.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't forget about you Naruto." I said, smiling. What a day.

* * *

**A/N:**

**-ASDFGHJKL so school is starting in three days, and I have so much to do. Maybe I should get my sleeping schedule back on track, instead of staying up until 4:30 in the morning writing fanfiction -sweatdrops- On top of that, my laptop broke & it's gonna take a while for me to exchange it & receive the new one.**  
**All of that means that I'll have less time to write & post, so please don't be mad at me if I don't update in a while.**  
**To make up for it, I wrote this long chapter & fixed some minor mistakes in the last one :D**

**-Anyway, so we found out more about Yuki in this chapter. Her clan's kekkei genkai is that their chakra is intertwined with fire. I've seen a lot of OCs that have water and/or wind based jutsus, so I thought I'd make one with a fire base. Is there more to her clan? :o Or is that just it lol.**

**Also, how does she know Kakashi?! Dun dun dun...**

**-Hinotama no Justu: Fireball Jutsu  
Katon- Gokakyu no Jutsu: Fire release/style- Great Fireball Technique  
Katon-Moeru Senpu: Fire release/style- Blazing Whirlwind**

-Finally, I see that this story is getting lots of views, so c'mon you shy chibi readers! Review! :D  
**I'll give you plushies c: C'mon, who doesn't like those?!**


End file.
